[DotGNU]Microsoft Buys .NET Presence at Canadian University

[Seth Johnson]

. . . The grant includes access to other Microsoft
technology, such as Microsoft's .Net technology. . . .  As
part of the deal, the University will offer a programming
course in Microsoft's new C# language. . . .  The class will
also be mandatory for the 300 students per year who are
accepted. The new class would replace an existing course
which taught C++ to new students.


> http://rss.com.com/2100-1001-949945.html

Microsoft’s grant has strings attached? 

By Margaret Kane 
August 15, 2002

Microsoft's Canadian subsidiary has established a $10
million fund to support technology research and development
at Canadian universities. But the first grant awarded from
the fund has already caused an uproar, after one of the
recipients agreed to require a class in a Microsoft
programming language as part of the deal.

The Microsoft Canada Academic Innovation Alliance was
formally launched Wednesday, with a $2.3 million grant to
University of Waterloo. The grant will fund, among other
projects, a research program developing a mathematical
recognition engine for the Tablet PC, for which Microsoft
has developed operating system. 

The grant includes access to other Microsoft technology,
such as Microsoft's .Net technology.

But it's a new class that has caused the stir. As part of
the deal, the University will offer a programming course in
Microsoft's new C# language. The class will be available
online for approximately 1,500 high-school students applying
to the Electrical and Computer Engineering department at the
University, a first for the University.

The class will also be mandatory for the 300 students per
year who are accepted. The new class would replace an
existing course which taught C++ to new students.

Representatives neither for Microsoft nor the University
could be reached for comment.

C# is a Java-esque language that Microsoft has developed as
part of its Web services strategy. Microsoft, like other
companies, competes for programmer "mindshare." By
convincing universities to teach classes on their
technologies, companies hope to inspire loyalty to their
products.

Students and faculty posted sharp criticism of the new
course at an online student news site at the University.

The deal shows "that the University admin. will do just
about anything for money," one alumnus posted to the news
site. "They will change the curriculum, the will place
whatever pressure is necessary on students and they will
sacrifice the University's role as an institution of
knowledge."

The deal also met with criticism from the University's
Federation of Students, whose vice president of education
said it "sets a dangerous precedent."

"This illustrates that when external organizations offer the
university money, they can effectively purchase their way
into the curriculum," Ryan O’Connor said in a release.